Abandoned Beneath the Shadows
by xXxBellaButterflyxXx
Summary: Tessa had grown up in an abandoned cabin at the edge of the woods, after being abandoned by her family at the age of 6. Jem had grown up at the Montana Institute to train to become a shadow-hunter. The two were destined to meet. But under what circumstances?
1. The Dream

**TESSA'S POV**

I finally struggled out of the ropes that had held me captive, I looked at my wrists, they were red, raw, and bloody.

"MOM!? DAD?! NATE?!" I shrilled.

I ran out of the dank abandoned cabin and onto the cold forest floor. I saw my family running away dropping a few items from their suitcases. When your six you wouldn't realize that they were running from me, I had honestly believed thought they had forgotten me. Running out of breath, I paused for a minute before running up to claim what they had dropped. It was a pair of my mother's shoes, and a pair or pants from my dad. Nate had dropped my favorite teddy bear in a mud puddle just ahead, dropping the garments, I ran to claim it . Just as I picked it up, masked man jumped out of the bush with a weapon of some sort in his hand. I shrieked, and ran as fast as I could back to the soggy cabin,only to discover he had followed me. He smiled a devilish smile and showed me his weapon.

"You're mine Tessa."

I woke up in a cold sweat and looked around the cabin to make sure I was alone, I took a shaky breath and laid back down on my pine bough bed. I had a reoccurring dream every year on the day my family took off. Every year had one more detail added though, the man in my dream was vaguely familiar, but I wasn't completely sure of who it was.

**JEM'S P.O.V**

"Jem. Your training is now complete, your first mission must start immediately." I fidgeted with the sleeve of my black cotton sleeve trying to make sense of what was happening. I had trained to become a demon fighting shadowhunter since I was 12, and it had taken me almost 4 years to complete training. I had never known anything else but the training center, and now I had to hunt demons down and risk my life. Mundane's wish they could do what I do, but to tell you the truth I wish nothing more than to be normal. A boy who falls in love, marries a beautiful girl, and to have a family of my own. Unfortunately, I most likely wouldn't be able to fulfill that wish. When I was a boy, a demon had tortured me and my family by giving me Yin Fen, a sparkly drug that I now need to live because of that horrid day. My hair and eyes have gone a silver color, instead of my dark natural colors.

"Jem? Are you paying attention?" Charlotte inquired.

"Yes. I understand. when do I start Charlotte?"

"Now. Go gear up, Will is ill today so you will be going alone into the forests behind the Institute. You will go to the waterfall that is 2 miles into the woods and wait there. Gabriel will be coming to help you."

I nodded my head and dismissed myself. _Why is Gabriel Lightwood coming..? I don't understand, none of us can stand any of them.._ I thought to myself. I slipped into my room and changed into proper gear and drew a few protective runes on me with a stele, and headed of on my first mission.

After the long trek over the hills and through thick brush, I found myself at the waterfall at last. I sat down on a smooth rock covered in a thin layer of moss, running my hands over it I suddenly felt something connect with the back of my head, causing me to be knocked from the rock and on to the ground.

"Tsk, tsk Jem. Maybe you should be more aware of your surroundings." Gabriel snickered. He hit the back of my head again with a club made of wood, and my world went black.

**TESSA'S POV**

I decided it would be best if I got on with my daily routine, I ran my hands through my hair getting any unwanted tangles out and grabbed my hand made bow I had made when I was ten. Opening the creaky door I stepped out into the brisk spring air, enjoying the fact that food will be easier to catch for the next 5 months. I knew animals were going to start coming out of hibernation and migrating back here any day, so I decided to start out at the waterfall for easy pickings.

It was a quarter mile walk to the waterfall, but I knew how to be productive and still get there in little time. On my way there, I picked pine bark off of tress and stuffed them into my basket with the rest of my gatherings. When I was about 20 feet from the water, I saw a crumpled figure on the ground and red liquid oozing around it. Cautiously, I approached what I thought was a dying or dead animal only to find that it was another human.

"Oh my goodness..." I gently shook the human boy trying to rouse with awake, "C'mon wake up!" I reached into my bag and pulled out a piece of fabric from my old childhood dress and tied it around the boy's head attempting to stop the bleeding. _What is he doing out in the middle of nowhere? What if he's like me..? No, I would have seen him before.. _My thoughts were interrupted by the boy making a horrid groaning noise, his eyes fluttered open and met mine they were a very odd silver color, just like his hair, but indeed were they ever lovely.

"What happened.. to me.. I don't know where I am.. Who are you..?" He groaned, he reached up to touch his head, but I grabbed his arm and put it back down at his side so he couldn't agitate it more.

"I'm Tessa Gray, and you are?"

"Jem Carstairs. I was supposed to be waiting for Gabriel Lightwood.. Have you seen another boy around her?"

At the name I finally realized something.. The man in my dream, was Gabriel's father.


	2. I don't get to talk to people that often

**TESSA'S POV**

I scrambled to my feet and instantly started trembling.

"Wha-what did you say the boy's name was again?" I stuttered.

"Gabriel Lightwood, son of Benedict Lightwood." Jem said.

"Oh my god.." Tears formed in my eyes, I blinked them away, I couldn't, and I wouldn't tell him or anyone what that man did to me. I cleared my throat and spoke once more my voice itching and scratching like sandpaper of my throat. "Would you like me to walk you back to where you cam from?"

"Oh, Tessa, if you come with me, you can't go back." He replied with a smirk.

**JEM'S POV**

Tess had wrapped my head tightly with a piece of fabric from her torn shoulder bag, helped me up and we began walking.

"So where did you grow up?" I tried to start a little bit of conversation so it wasn't terribly awkward for the both of us. She didn't reply for a minute and then opened her mouth and closed it once more.

"I..Uh.. I grew up in a cabin out here in the woods."

"Interesting. Who lives there with you? Do you have any siblings?"

"No. My family abandoned me, Jem. When I was 6 they ditched me at that cabin, I learnt to fend for myself."

"Oh.. I'm sorry, I didn't kn-"

"I had a brother, a mom, and a dad. We were fantastically happy, It was like we were a perfect family, my parents didn't fight, my brother didn't argue with me. If I would have been a little older, I would have known this wasn't normal. I would have thought my family was slightly creepy. When you're six though, you don't expect your family to just leave you in a cabin alone, with nothing, to basically die. Luckily, my mom had a fruit and vegetable garden outside of our house, so food that I knew was edible, I could easily gather." She sighed. "I'm sorry, I don't really get to talk to other people that often."

"I understand what you feel, I lost my parents too."

The leaves rustling in the wind was about the only communication we had until we had reached the institute.

"We're here, can you see it?" I asked.

"Uh why wouldn't I see it? It's a giant building!" she giggled.

"Some things are better left off unspoken." I muttered under my breath.

**TESSA'S POV:**

I was utterly confused at why Jem had made that comment, but I decided to leave it alone. His hand was on the small of my back leading me up the grand stairs that lead into the Institute. It was made of limestone with shiny bits in it, and it sparkled in ways that could only seem majestic.

Walking into the building seemed almost like I was in some sort of a trance, above me, the ceiling was open and there where skylights allowing the sun rays to flow into the front parlor. The design on the floor was of an odd blackened symbol that looked like an eye with a strange line through it. A girl with glossy brown hair and hazel eyes came to the parlor and greeted Jem.

"Hello Master Carstairs, Charlotte has been wondering where you have ben, you've been gone an awful long time." She finally lifted her eyes to meet Jem's and she realized that there was a bandage across his forehead with a thin layer of blood seeping through. "Oh my goodness! What has happened to you?!" She shrieked.

"Sophie, it's okay, I just had a run in with Gabriel, that's all. He wasn't there for what Charlotte believed he was, and he bashed me in the side of the head. I have a headache, and I'm a little dizzy, but I'm okay."

She fretted with her fingers but nodded her head slightly. "Who is this lady that you have brought into here?"

"This is Tessa Gray, she found me when I had been knocked out she bandaged my head for me."

"Hello Miss Gray. It is a pleasure to meet you. Shall we go to meet Master Herondale and Charlotte now?"

She lead us down a series of corridors lined with torches burning with a witchy sort of flame, the tip of the torch wasn't even burnt what so ever, and I wondered what they had done to make it that way. Opening a large door, she lead us into a room with walls of glass, and books filled the floor, even with all the shelves lined with hundreds of thousands of books.

"Master Herondale? Jem and a visitor are here to meet you." Sophie squeaked.

"And who is this visitor that you speak of, Sophie?"

He appeared from around a corner with a book in hand, his blue gaze piercing straight through mine.


End file.
